As the last of the fall color fades and our perennials melt to the ground, one would think that about all we would have to look forward to would be a bunch of sticks and dull evergreens. In reality, nothing could be farther from the truth. There is such an incredible diversity in the plant world that no one should have to suffer the fate of a dull winter garden...

Before I bombard you with an endless list of chores for this month I want to make sure you take the time to appreciate this fall. It has been one of the finest I can remember. We can thank the warm summer and dry fall for the most fantastic parade of oranges, yellows, reds, and purples that I have ever seen. The lack of a heavy frost has also allowed those colorful leaves to hang around much longer, so enjoy them while they last. It just doesn’t get any better than this. Now, onto the “List”…

As we move into the holidays I am keenly aware that it gets harder and harder for me to motivate you to play in the garden. I get it. You have been moving hoses around all summer, mowing the lawn every week, now you are sick and tired of it. But I would propose that the beauty of the fall is that you no longer have to deal with the mundane tasks of mowing and watering and can concentrate on the fun stuff like...

There are lots of reasons why we are drawn to different plants. Most often it is because we like their flowers. We purposefully design our gardens to allow us to incorporate as many different colors of flowers as we can for our viewing enjoyment during the spring and summer months, but we rarely consider doing the same thing for the fall...

Pruning blooming shrubs shouldn’t be complicated! Hydrangeas are one of those shrubs that tend to be thought of as challenging when it comes to pruning, I'm here to help change that thought. Here are my helpful tips to make you more confident when pruning your hydrangeas...

I think it is safe to say that any gardener worth his/her salt has got to be an eternal optimist. Whether we are planting seeds, bulbs, or actual plants, our focus is always on the end result, the vision of how beautiful our garden will be once our new additions grow and mature...

As predicted, the beginning of fall this year has been dry and warm. It’s still a wonderful time to be outside in the yard. Here are my suggestions of what to do around the garden this month, while the weather is still nice…

Recently a good friend of mine complimented me on my column about late summer bloomers for the sunny border but lamented that she only had shade in her yard and couldn’t take advantage of my advice. So for her benefit and anyone else that is faced with an overabundance of shade, here are some bloomers that will liven up any dark corner of the yard this time of the year...

Let’s face it, for the most part the lawn is the man’s domain.It is literally his “turf” and when left alone he can spend endless hours in the yard. Depending on how the turf is maintained, this can either be an ecological disaster or a valuable bio-filter and climate moderator. Here are some thoughts to consider...

Latest post from Steve Smith, “The Whistling Gardener”:

Considering all the rain that we have received lately, it is probably safe to assume that most of us have not completed the tasks I wrote about last week. I managed to hoe out some of my shot weed and spent one hour pruning some shrubs, but that was about it. Hopefully the rest of you were able to do a little better. Just in case you have run out of chores, here are a few more to consider...